Struggling With Infertility? The Top 8 Ways To Support Fertility + The Functional Medicine Labs You Need To Know About

Natural Ways To Improve Fertility

A functional medicine approach recognizes that everyone’s case is unique, so specific recommendations for improving fertility can vary. But with that said, these are some of my favorite tools for boosting fertility holistically.

1. Manage Your Blood Sugar

Knowing that high blood sugar is so closely tied with PCOS and other hormone imbalances, stabilizing your blood sugar should be a priority.

Food is an integral piece of the blood sugar puzzle, and is best managed with a diet focused on reduced sugar consumption and clean, whole foods that are high in healthy fats and clean protein. To learn more about the best foods to eat for PCOS and hormone imbalance, check out my article here.

2. Try Acupuncture

Acupuncture, a staple in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), has long been used as a natural fertility treatment and has been shown in many studies to significantly increase pregnancy rates in women with unexplained fertility. (8)

A systematic review published in the Chinese Journal Of Integrated Medicine found that acupuncture may be successful in boosting fertility because of its ability to improve ovulation through balancing and regulating the endocrine system, metabolism, and ovarian blood flow. (9)

3. Correct Any Nutritional Deficiencies

Multiple studies have found links between infertility and deficiencies in micronutrients like Vitamin D, Vitamin B12, folate, and zinc. (10-13)

Depending on the specific nutrients that are lacking and other individual factors, correcting deficiencies will often involve a combination of food sources and supplements.

My supplements The D3-K2 and The Methylator provide highly bioavailable forms of Vitamin D, and Vitamin B12 and folate, respectively, for maximum absorption. You can also find zinc, B12, and folate, as well as several other supportive vitamins, minerals, and amino acids, in my Gut Feelings blend.

4. Eat an Anti-Inflammatory Diet

Food is foundational when it comes to supporting fertility, preconception and prenatal health, egg quality, and overall wellness. As I’ve already touched on, it’s important to focus on clean, whole foods. Try to consume a wide variety of plant foods to ensure you’re taking in plenty of different supportive micronutrients, antioxidants, and phytonutrients.

Make sure you’re getting lots of omega-3 fatty acids, which are found in fatty fish like salmon and mackerel, as well as plant sources including flaxseeds and walnuts (you can also take a fish oil supplement if you need extra support).

The Mediterranean diet is often recommended as a balanced, anti-inflammatory diet template. I love that this diet focuses on whole foods and variety; however, for many people grains and dairy (which are included in this diet) can trigger inflammation. Ultimately, you have to find the way of eating that feels best for you (an elimination diet can help with this).

5. Go Non-Toxic

Making the switch to non-toxic beauty and cleaning products is one of the best lifestyle changes you can make to naturally boost your fertility. By eliminating as many endocrine disrupting chemicals as possible, you are giving your body a break from constantly having to be on the defense against these chemicals.

You can also support your liver (your body’s main detox organ) with supplements like milk thistle to enhance your body’s natural detoxification process.

6. Try Natural Supplements

In addition to the micronutrients mentioned above, certain natural supplements have been used for years around the world for female reproductive health, and have shown a lot of promise in recent clinical studies for boosting fertility.

• Bee pollen: A nutritional powerhouse, one study found that regular supplementation of bee pollen was able to boost women’s chances of getting pregnant by 40% after just 9 months. (14)
• Chastetree berry: Often used as a treatment for severe PMS and PMDD, studies also show that it can be beneficial for both male and female infertility. (15) Chastetree extract is included in my Balance supplement.
• Myo-inositol: A common supplement for PCOS, myo-inositol is so effective that in one controlled trial, researchers found that women taking myo-inositol supplements achieved a natural pregnancy rate of 30% over a 6-month period compared to just 18% on metformin, a diabetes drug that has become the go-to treatment for PCOS in the conventional medicine world. (16) You can find myo-inositol in Chill.
• Black cohosh: Studies have linked this herb to a significant improvement in pregnancy rates for those struggling with PCOS-related infertility. (17) Black cohosh is included in Thrive.

7. Heal Your Stress Response

This is often easier said than done, but it is definitely one of the best things you can do to boost your fertility. Stress can be a root cause of infertility, and healthy stress management is important for overall well-being.

Since chronic stress leads to sky high cortisol levels that can throw all of your sex hormones out of whack and drive up inflammation, it’s imperative to start addressing stress and your stress response as much as possible.

Make JOMO (the joy of missing out) a regular practice, reevaluate unhealthy relationships, and start implementing mindfulness practices like breathwork, yoga, journaling, or meditation.

8. Support Gut Health

Supporting a healthy environment in your gut is essential for hormone balance, wellness, and fertility. Many things we’ve already talked about, like eating an anti-inflammatory diet and dealing with chronic stress, will help here.

You may also want to add a high quality probiotic supplement to your routine, and incorporate probiotic and prebiotic foods into your eating plan. Depending on what comes up in gut microbiome testing, a functional medicine practitioner may have more individualized recommendations to get your microbiome into balance.

Seeking Help From a Functional Medicine Expert

Ultimately, everyone’s journey with fertility is unique. As a functional medicine expert, my job is to help you uncover the underlying causes behind your fertility struggles and put you on a path toward healing. From specialized lab testing to a comprehensive health history, my telehealth functional medicine team and I specialize in personalized functional medicine care for your whole mind and body health.

If you are struggling with infertility and looking for a more holistic approach, schedule a telehealth consultation today to learn more about how we can help you with functional medicine.

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As one of the first functional medicine telehealth clinics in the world, we provide webcam health consultations for people around the globe.